Eric Khoo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Eric Khoo
Khoo receiving the Honorary Cyclo d'Or in 2019
Born	(1965-03-27) 27 March 1965 (age 60) Singapore
Alma mater	United World College of South East Asia City Art Institute, Sydney
Occupation	Film director screenwriter producer cinematographer
Years active	1990–present
Spouse(s)	Kim Eun Choo ​ (m. 1997)​
Children	4
Parents	Khoo Teck Puat (father) Rose Marie Wee (mother)
Chinese name
Chinese	邱金海
Hanyu Pinyin	Qiū Jīnhǎi

Eric Khoo Kim Hai (born 27 March 1965) is a famous film director and producer from Singapore. Many people say he helped bring the modern film industry in Singapore back to life.

Early Life and Education

Eric Khoo and Jeanette Aw at Books Kinokuniya for the DVD premiere of Ramen Teh

Eric Khoo was born in Singapore on March 27, 1965. He was the youngest of 15 children. His mother loved movies and introduced him to cinema when he was only three years old.

He went to the United World College of South East Asia for his education. Because he loved films so much, he later studied cinematography (the art of making movies) at the City Art Institute in Sydney, Australia.

Filmmaking Career

Eric Khoo's movies like Mee Pok Man and 12 Storeys have been shown at over 60 film festivals around the world. These include big festivals like the Venice, Berlin, and Rotterdam festivals.

In 1998, Asiaweek magazine named Khoo as one of the top 25 trendsetters in Asia. The next year, he was included in their list of leaders for the new millennium. He also helped produce popular local comedy movies like Liang Po Po – The Movie (1999) and One Leg Kicking (2001). These were the highest-earning local movies in Singapore for those years.

Khoo also produced 15 (2003), a film directed by Royston Tan. This movie was shown at the Venice Film Festival and Sundance. He also worked on TV shows, helping young filmmakers get started.

Some of his important achievements include being the first person to receive the Young Artist Award for Film in 1997. He also helped write a special report that led to the creation of the Singapore Film Commission. This group helps support filmmaking in Singapore.

In 2004, Khoo directed his third major film, Be With Me. This movie was chosen to open the Directors’ Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival in 2005. The film won many awards and was shown at other big festivals like Toronto and Telluride. It was also shown in the US and Europe and received great reviews.

Khoo was a judge at the 10th Busan International Film Festival in 2005. His film Be With Me was the first Singaporean movie to be nominated for the European Film Awards in 2005. In 2006, he produced Royston Tan’s second film, 4:30. He was also asked to direct a film called No Day Off for the Jeonju Digital Film Festival in Korea. This film was about an Indonesian maid. The Seoul Independent Film Festival honored him by showing many of his films.

In 2007, Khoo became a board member of NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Asia. He produced Royston Tan's hit movie 881. In the same year, the President of Singapore gave him the Cultural Medallion, which is Singapore's highest arts honor. In 2008, Khoo's film My Magic was chosen for the main competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It won the best film award at the Fribourg International Film Festival and was voted best film of 2008 by the French newspaper Le Monde.

In 2009, Khoo started a new company called Gorylah to make genre films. Their first film, Darah, won the Best Actress award at a film festival in Korea. Khoo also produced Boo Junfeng's first film, Sandcastle, which was shown at Cannes in 2010. The Centre Pompidou in Paris held a special event showing Eric Khoo's films in 2010. He was also featured in a book called Take 100 - The Future of Film, which highlighted 100 new directors. In 2010, Khoo was the head judge for the main competition at the Locarno International Film Festival.

His first animated film, Tatsumi, is based on the life and stories of Yoshihiro Tatsumi. It was shown at the 64th Cannes Film Festival in 2011. Tatsumi won best animated film at the Sitges Film Festival and other awards at the Dubai International Film Festival. It was also shown at The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in North America. In the same year, his produced film 23:59, a ghost story about the army, was the number one movie at the Singapore box office. In 2012, Khoo was the head judge at the Asian Film Awards and the Rotterdam International Film Festival. He was also the head judge at the Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival in 2013.

Eric Khoo has five highly praised films that have been shown at film festivals worldwide: Mee Pok Man (1995), 12 Storeys (1997), Be with Me (2005), My Magic (2008), and Tatsumi (2011).

• Mee Pok Man won awards in Singapore, Fukuoka, and Pusan.
• 12 Storeys won the FIPRESCI Award and was the first Singapore film invited to the Cannes Film Festival.
• Be With Me opened the Directors' Fortnight at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival.
• My Magic was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival and was chosen as one of the top five films that year by Le Monde.
• Tatsumi was shown in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.

In 2015, Mee Pok Man was restored for its 20th anniversary and shown at the Singapore International Film Festival.

Also in 2015, Khoo released a short film called Cinema. This film was part of a collection called 7 Letters, which celebrated Singapore's 50th year of independence. He also released a TV movie called Wanton Mee, which explored Singapore's street food scene. This film was shown at film festivals in Spain and Germany. It was also available on Singapore Airlines' flights.

In 2016, Khoo worked with other famous Southeast Asian filmmakers on a project called Art Through Our Eyes. This project brought together filmmakers from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Singapore.

In 2018, Khoo directed Ramen Teh, which stars the Japanese actress Seiko Matsuda. This film was the closing film of the Culinary Cinema section at the Berlin International Film Festival. He also started the Scream Asia Festival in Singapore.

Personal Life

Khoo in 2010

Eric Khoo is married to Kim Eun Choo. They have four sons named Edward, James, Christopher, and Lucas.

Selected Films and TV Shows

Awards and Honors

• Best Director for a Short Film at the Singapore International Film Festival in 1994
• National Arts Council, Singapore Young Artist Award for Film in 1997
• Singapore Youth Awards in 1999
• Best Director at the Torino Film Festival in 2005
• Singapore Youth Awards Medal Of Commendation in 2006
• Chevalier de l'ordre des arts et des letters (a French honor for arts and literature) in 2008

See Also

• Cinema of Singapore